Wendy Hesford studies modern-day slavery and human trafficking using a humanities-based approach, analyzing representations of the Islamic State’s enslavement of Yazidi Women and girls. In this talk Hesford elucidates the gendering of terror and rescue in the US international imaginary and how Yazidi victims position themselves and become “intelligible” within particular narrative accounts. Testimonies to human rights atrocities, Yazidi survivors’ stories also are mobilized to advance political platforms. Attention to the discursive field, Hesford argues, yields insights into the linkage of human trafficking and terrorism through shared concepts of sexuality, security, and patriarchy, and how these links drive US domestic and foreign policy.

This lecture is part of the GLC Brown Bag Lecture Series. Bring your lunch - dessert will be provided.
For more information, call (203) 432-3339 or visit the GLC website: glc.yale.edu